Residents hope for best, brace for worst as wildfire sizzles near Colorado Springs

By Greg Botelho and George Howell, CNN

Updated 6:58 AM ET, Sat June 15, 2013

Photos: Wildfires spread across Colorado29 photos

Wildfires spread across Colorado – Plumes of smoke rise above Del Norte Peak in Colorado on Sunday, June 23. Fires have been burning across Colorado since early June.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Smoke fills the sky as dawn breaks near South Fork, Colorado, on Saturday, June 22.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Colorado State Patrol Officer Jessie Bartunek speaks to a resident on the outskirts of South Fork on June 22.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Firefighters monitor a wildfire in a residential area in South Fork on Friday, June 21.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – A photo taken by the Pike Interagency Hotshot Crew shows the West Fork Fire Complex, made up of the West Fork Fire and Windy Pass Fire, burning 15 miles north of Pagosa Springs, Colorado, on Thursday, June 20.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – The West Fork Fire Complex burns 15 miles north of Pagosa Springs, on June 20, as a fire crew truck is parked nearby.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Smoke from the West Fork Fire Complex consisting of the West Fork and Windy Pass fires fills the sky on June 20.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – A mix of smoke and storm clouds gathers in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on Friday, June 14, three days after two major wildfires burned through the area. Rain has aided firefighters in containing the fires.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Bonnie Kruse hugs her husband, James Kruse, at a press conference in Colorado Springs on June 14.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – El Paso County Sheriff Terry Maketa speaks during a press conference about the Black Forest fire on June 14 in Colorado Springs. County spokesman Dave Rose told CNN it appeared to be the most destructive in the history of Colorado.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – An orange sky highlights a fire on Thursday, June 13, that has been burning since June 11 near Colorado Springs.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – An aerial view on June 13 shows destroyed house and vehicles after the Black Forest Fire passed through Black Forest, Colorado.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – A Blackhawk helicopter patrols over the Black Forest Fire on June 13.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – A baseball game goes on despite a raging wildfire in Colorado on Wednesday, June 12.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – A firefighter fights a blaze near Black Forest, Colorado, on Wednesday, June 12. The Black Forest Fire is one of two major wildfires near Colorado Springs. The other, the Royal Gorge Fire, is threatening the Royal Gorge Suspension Bridge.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Smoke billows from the Black Forest Fire near a house north of Colorado Springs on June 12.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Smoke rises from the Black Forest Fire near Colorado Springs on June 12.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Smoke covers the area on June 12.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – High temperatures, dry brush and gusty winds are proving to be a catastrophic combination in central Colorado.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – An airplane drops flame retardant over the Black Forest Fire on June 12 near Colorado Springs.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Schad Dohl watches a wall of fire as it rages through the Black Forest near Colorado Springs on Wednesday, June 12.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – A house burns late in the evening on Tuesday, June 11, northeast of Colorado Springs.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Firefighters from the Black Forest Fire Department race toward a burning home near Colorado Springs on June 11.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – A house burns near Colorado Springs on June 11.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – El Paso County Sheriff's Deputy Dan Cukowski helps Linda Davies walk her livestock out from the evacuated area in Colorado Springs on June 11.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Andrew Dunlap and his father, Dave Dunlap, watch as a wildfire burns behind their house in Colorado Springs on June 11.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Motorists stop along Interquest Parkway in Colorado Springs on June 11 to watch the advance of a wildfire burning in the Black Forest.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – Lynd Fitzgerald sprays fire retardant around a house in Colorado Springs on June 11.

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Wildfires spread across Colorado – A wildfire burns in the Black Forest near Colorado Springs on June 11.

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Story highlights

473 structures have been destroyed by the Black Forest Fire in central Colorado

An official estimates 30% containment of the over 15,000-acre fire, up from 5%

A heavy burst of rain helps those fighting the blaze near Colorado Springs

At least 20 structures are burned in the Royal Gorge Fire southwest of Colorado Springs

Dressed in yellow, he stands a foot off the deck of a Colorado Springs home, and a few feet from the woods.

Everywhere in front of him, there's fire.

Thankfully, the flames that climb about five feet up backyard trees don't catch on -- partly because a homeowner wisely trimmed lower branches, in the event of a raging wildfire just like this. And thankfully, the man standing his ground is a firefighter -- and he isn't alone, one of hundreds doing what they can to combat and control the Black Forest Fire that had already singed more than 15,000 acres as of Friday.

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The destruction isn't always dictated by rhyme or reason: Giselle Hernandez told CNN that her home has been spared so far, but her neighbors to the south lost theirs.

"It just goes to show you how unpredictable these things can be," she said.

Progress in fighting blaze

This is the second time in a year that the Colorado Springs area has faced a mammoth wildfire. Last summer's Waldo Canyon Fire burned down about 350 homes and 18,000 acres. Some 32,000 evacuated their homes and two people died. They can start, and spread, quickly -- with no regard to what's in their path.

That's what happened with the Black Forest Fire after it first flared Tuesday afternoon, for still undetermined reasons.

Hernandez remembered how she, her boyfriend and his family spotted smoke and began mulling the possibility of leaving. But that possibility soon turned into a necessity, as the flames rapidly approached.

"It went from, 'Well, we should probably pack and get going,' to, 'We need to leave right now' as the smoke started billowing right through the trees on our property."

The wildfire has been blamed for two deaths. In terms of total property lost and damaged, El Paso County spokesman Dave Rose told CNN earlier this week that it appeared to be the most destructive in state history.

Some 800 personnel are attacking the blaze, and doing it in sweltering heat: Temperatures climbed to around 90 degrees Friday.

In addition to those on the ground, multiple Chinook and Blackhawk helicopters and tankers traversed the air as part of the effort. Authorities spent much of the day Friday surveying most of the 7,000 homes they'd wanted to check to determine which ones made it, which ones did not.

Crews had gained "some tremendous ground" by morning in identifying hotspots and saving structures, county Sheriff Terry Maketa said. Even so, the blaze was then only 5% contained.

Friday, though, proved to be a good day. Skies were at times overcast, temperatures fell somewhat, and there was a strong burst of rain.

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"We got our tails kicked for a couple days, yesterday we saw it as a draw, and ... today we delivered some blows," Maketa said.

Those elements and tactical moves left Rich Harvey, the head of the federal incident management team tackling the blaze, optimistic that crews had turned the corner: They'd gone from being on the defensive to the offensive, Harvey said early Friday evening, estimating 30% containment at that point.

Yet he, Harvey and citizens affected by the fire -- like Dale Mielke, who singed his mustache and eyebrows while saving his home but not those of his neighbors -- also stressed that the spurt of heavy rain doesn't mean the fight is over.

"It's not even enough rain to stop it," said Mielke, a retired firefighter. "But it can help slow it down a little bit."

Resident says: 'Things are out of our hands'

Carolyn Selvig has been living in this area north of Colorado Springs for 21 years drawn in part by the beauty and peace of the woods.

"The forest is our friend," she says.

Selvig knows the other side of the equation as well when it comes to living near a forest -- the very real possibility and very real power of wildfires.

She and her husband Erik are among roughly 38,000 people -- from about 13,000 homes over a 93,000-acre area -- who have been impacted by the Black Forest Fire.

As of midday Friday, their home was still standing, though they can't breathe easy quite yet: Erik Selvig noted "the intense heat is less than a quarter-mile away."

His wife, Carolyn, admits she's probably "more worried than I allow myself to think." Still, she realizes there's little she can do at this point beyond trusting in those fighting to save their home and hoping that Mother Nature is on her side.

"Things are out of our hands," she told CNN. "It is what it is."

The Selvigs are checking, whenever they can, the official list of homes that have been destroyed and those that have not.

The Black Forest Fire isn't the only fire affecting Colorado.

Southwest of Colorado Springs, the Royal Gorge fire is now 40% contained after four days in which it scorched more than 3,200 acres -- including a beloved carousel and at least 20 buildings, according to Hickenlooper.

"It's burned to a cinder," he said of the area.

And the governor has declared a disaster emergency in Rocky Mountain National Park, northwest of Denver, due to the Big Meadows Fire that's burned hundreds of acres there.

Yes, Coloradans know wildfires are a fact of life; yes, they know that their homes could someday burn. But that doesn't mean dealing with it, in the moment, is easy.

Says Chris Schroeder, who is also in the Black Forest Fire evacuation zone, "It's been a pretty good emotional roller coaster, trying to understand what is happening."

Despite the noted progress on that fire, that ride isn't over. Many have been allowed back in their homes, while others are still being kept. And hundreds of firefighters are still out doing what they can to protect people's property, knowing that a lightning strike or shift of wind can suddenly change everything.

"It is not a done deal: 30% is not 100%," Harvey said late Friday afternoon. "The middle has still got potential."